


say sorry >:(

by EllieWan



Category: Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six (Video Games)
Genre: Apologies, Couple Argument, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Light-Hearted, M/M, Psychological, SI 2021, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-13 02:46:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29644593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EllieWan/pseuds/EllieWan
Summary: CH1: IQ is mad at Kali for what she did in the Tournament.Kali realizes she messed up and goes to apologize to Ash (and Mira, who's strangely glued to Ash.)CH2: Gridlock is absolutely shocked by Sledge's behavior during Ash and Kali's argument.She sents him to say sorry to Thermite, and takes all hugs and kisses hostage meanwhile.CH3: Ace has been looking for Thermite since the dispute, but can't find him.(Thermite who's of course hiding somewhere, concealing his mental and physical pain.)
Relationships: Elena "Mira" Maria Álvarez/Eliza "Ash" Cohen, Håvard "Ace" Haugland/Jordan "Thermite" Trace, Jaimini Kalimohan "Kali" Shah/Monika "IQ" Weiss, Seamus "Sledge" Cowden/Tori "Gridlock" Tallyo Fairous
Comments: 10
Kudos: 31





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, completely savage fic, most of it is written on the absolute spur of the moment, right after the discovery of the cutscene!  
> I just NEEDED it out, I wanted them to say sorry to each other >:( because Ellie no like conflicts hahaha.  
> Tone varies from one chapter to the other.  
> \+ Sorry for any mistake / weird phrasing (most of the proofreading is done between 2AM and 3AM, so... sorry haha)

“Moonie?” Kali called.

“What?” IQ bitterly replied.

IQ was brushing her hair in front of the mirror of their room, while Kali was lazily lying like a Greek statue on the two beds they had stuck to each other. IQ was obviously pissed at her, probably because of the game and the fight with Ash that happened in the morning. Kali rolled her eyes, and sighed:

“Come on, don’t tell me you’re also mad because of that game.”

IQ loudly put her hairbrush down on the table, and pointed her finger at her:

“I’m not mad, I am BEYOND mad, Jai!” she cried.

Kali rolled her eyes again.

“Come on, it was just a game.”

“You hurt Eliza.”

“Yeah, I know, but we won!” Kali replied with a shrug.

“She was on your team. You used them as bait,” IQ bitterly argued. “Grace was killed because of you. You ruined their cover to create your selfish opportunity.”

“Honey, I really don’t understand why you’re angry like that,” Kali scoffed, “it was just a game, we had to win, and I made us win, end of the story. You’re an even fiercer competitor than me, you hate losing, don’t pretend you wouldn’t have played all your cards too.”

“This was not just a game, Jai, and you know it!” IQ cried again, looking daggers at her. “We’re supposed to train for real-life situations! Lives could be at risk!”

“I wouldn’t have done the same, if it were a _real-life situation_ , which it wasn’t. And you know it, Moonie.”

“And how would they know? How would Ash know?”

“Well, you trust me, don’t you?”

Monika balled her hands into fists, barely repressing herself from punching the wall.

“Because I know you, and I can see past your BITCH skin. But they can’t, because you don’t show them! You don’t prove anything! You keep on acting like an untrustworthy two-faced asshole! I mean, would you have teamkilled her back there? Do you realize how SERIOUS that would have been?”

“But it was just a game, Monika!” Kali started shouting too. “It was just for competition!”

“Ok, you want to play idiots, then please be my guest. I’m just wasting my time, and I have better things to do.”

IQ started packing her stuff in a bag, including her toiletries, her clothes, and all the things she had brought to Kali’s room.

“W-What are you doing?” Kali suddenly asked, paling at an alarming speed, and standing up from the bed.

“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m not sleeping with you and your bitchy attitude.”

“Are you breaking up with me?!” Kali exclaimed, her heart falling in her chest, not realizing what was happening.

“Just, have a good sleep on it, and think about what you did and your stupid behavior. I’m tired of fighting for someone who doesn’t do a single effort.”

“But, Monika… please, it’s… you can’t…”

Kali’s hand barely grazed IQ’s shoulder, as the German operator was heading for the door with her roughly packed belongings. She however stopped before crossing the threshold, and told her:

“Jai… I know there’s someone good in you, under all this bitchy persona. But you can’t let it have the best of you like that. You didn’t need to be the best at this competition, you didn’t need to prove your skills to anyone… you just had to prove you could be a _trustworthy_ teammate, and even if you won the game… you ended up losing more than that.”

The door slammed shut behind her, and Kali let herself fall back to the bed. She passed her hands through her hair, pulling at her roots, and squeezed her eyes shut.

_She had just wanted to be the best. The most dangerous, the most ruthless. She had fought for victory. She had even thought Ash would have appreciated her devotion to the match._

_But maybe trust was the thing she should have fought for - the only victory that had meaning._

Footsteps echoed through the workshop. And Mira could recognize those through an entire crowd. She couldn’t put a figure on how many times she had heard them before getting challenged on her gadgets, her decisions as Rainbow’s Director of R&D, or simply because of her different views on strategies.

She put her screwdriver back down, stopping the repairs on her gadget, and turned around to meet her guest.

“Eliza Cohen,” she playfully said, “you look like someone who hasn’t calmed down from a fight, eh?”

Ash didn’t reply anything, not even an eyeroll. She just shrugged, hands in the pockets of her loose army jacket.

“Yeah… Sorry about earlier.”

“Oh, please don’t be,” Mira scoffed, “that bitch surely deserved it.”

Ash looked up to meet her eyes, as if looking for additional approval, or surprised to be on the same wavelength as her nemesis.

_Well, former nemesis._

“About that, I… I shouldn’t have punched her, that was quite unprofessional of me, and a lack of self-control, but I just wanted to let you know that I… I appreciated the support back there.”

“As I said, she deserved it,” Mira repeated with an amused smile.

“I know,” Ash resumed, “but you didn’t have to. And I know you and I aren’t often on the same page but… it meant a lot. Thanks.”

Mira frowned a bit at Ash’s sad face. She glanced at the bloodied bandage on her ear, and grimaced, feeling anger rising in her guts – like it did back then when she had realized what happened. Mozzie had thought she was mad to have been downed by Kali and lost the match, but no.

She had just seen red at the idea of someone - Kali, of all people - hurting Ash like that.

“Listen Eliza, you’re right,” she started. “We’re not often on the same page, but if you hadn’t punched her stupid face, I would have. She went off limits and… she hurt you. And though we may not be the best friends, I don’t want you to get hurt. I don’t like it. If anyone should hurt you, it should be me, huh?”

Ash’s lips softly stretched into a smile at the joke, but it was a weak one. Her face looked paler than usual. And Mira _really_ didn’t like that. Something was swarming in her belly at this sight, and before she was even aware of it, her hand was reaching for Ash’s, and softly rubbing her cool pale-skinned palm.

“Just don’t doubt yourself, _querida._ ”

“Thanks. I… Sorry, I’m still a little out of it,” Ash stuttered a bit, discreetly blushing at the contact with Mira’s hand.

“D’you want us to grab some coffee in the kitchen?” Mira offered. “You _look_ like you could use some.”

“Uh, I’d take that as a compliment,” Ash scoffed.

Mira’s heart skipped a beat, when she saw Ash finally grinning genuinely.

They were about to leave the workshop when they heard someone coming it. The door opened and Kali appeared.

In an instinctive reflex she wasn’t aware of, Mira stepped forward to stand slightly before Ash. As if to shield her.

“Hey?” Kali awkwardly said.

On her face was an embarrassed smile. There didn’t seem to be any teasing, nor taunting behind it – but how could they be sure? A thick tape was stuck on her fractured nose, and it kind of made her look ridiculously human.

“Get out of our sight, Kali,” Mira growled.

“No, I wish to say something.”

“We don’t want to talk to you,” Mira replied before Ash could utter anything.

“No problem, I don’t need you girls to talk,” Kali scoffed, “I only need you to listen to what I have to say.”

Mira rolled her eyes, and softly pressed her hand on Ash’s lower back, guiding her towards the exit.

“I’m sorry!” Kali loudly said behind them.

“No, you’re not,” Mira barked back.

“I am,” Kali insisted, her voice softer than usual.

Ash stopped, and Mira frowned. She looked at Ash, who just sighed and turned around to face Kali.

“Why would you be?” Ash asked, giving Kali way more time than Mira would have accepted to _consider_.

But that was the reason why Ash was Six’s right-hand woman since the reactivation of Rainbow. She could see past differences in order to build a better future for everyone. A safer and studier future for them. Yet, one thing Mira knew, is that Ash could forgive – just like she would probably forgive Harry for his mistakes – but that didn’t mean she _forgot_.

“Cause I acted like a child back then, and I hurt you. And I’m sorry for it.”

“You don’t mean it,” Ash challenged her.

“Of course, I do. There’s no one around to play comedy for, so why would I be lying?”

“Well, you still are a manipulative self-centered and ruthless greedy mercenary?” Ash replied.

Kali gaped at that, snorting at the flow of depreciative words, but she refrained herself from striking back.

“Ok, maybe I am,” she conceded, putting her hands on her hips, “but I know how to acknowledge when I fucked up. And though I unfortunately can’t undo what I did, I want you to know that I would never have done a single part of this in a real situation.”

“Well, I _unfortunately_ can’t believe you,” Ash replied with a faked sorry look.

“It won’t happen again. I took the competition as a fragging game, rather than an opportunity to show how we could deal with a terrorist situation with the best professionalism. I kind of thought that by showing how skilled I was, how deadly I could be, I would have earned your respect. I just didn’t realize I had to earn your trust first.”

Ash and Mira exchanged a gaze.

“Well, how fucking mature of you,” Mira scoffed. “Did you rehearse that?”

Kali grimaced, her face exposing her inner struggle to repress any sarcasm from leaving her mouth and worsening the situation she was trying to sooth. Ash just sighed.

“I’m not expecting you to forgive me,” Kali resumed, “I just wanted you to know that I acknowledged I did wrong, and that I would never endanger any member of my team in a real situation, not even to create an opportunity. I know it’s going to take some time, and a lot of actions to build a healthier foundation, but well, at this point, it can’t be worse, uh?”

Kali stretched her hand for Ash to grab it. The redhead stared at it dubiously, and squinted a bit at Kali’s face, trying to find any hints regarding a possible deception, some mischief or dishonesty. But she was just seeing a woman with a ridiculously large tape on the middle of her face.

She gave in, and squeezed Kali’s hand. She squeezed it hard enough to hurt, and Kali barely repressed a wince of pain.

“This does not mean I have forgiven you for what you did today. Neither does it mean I trust you,” Ash warned her, gritting her teeth a bit, “but this means I am ok to take what you’ve just said into account, and that _if_ you happen to show yourself reliable, I _might_ accept to _start_ trusting you.”

Kali smirked.

“Sure thing, _boss,_ ” she playfully said, though it sounded more casual than evil.

Ash rolled her eyes at the nickname, and let go of Kali’s hand, turning back to Mira and heading for the door.

“And don’t call her _princess_ , again,” Mira spit, following closely Ash, and slamming the door shut behind them.

Once they were in the corridor, heading for the kitchen, Ash deeply breathed out, letting her shoulders relax a bit.

“Well, that was unexpected,” she said.

“Yeah… I’m still not sure if we should believe her,” Mira dubiously replied.

“I wouldn’t take the risk, but I’m willing to see past this match. That’s the only way we can be sure she’s not a threat to us.”

“Why not just firing them?” Mira asked straightforwardly.

“They could be contracted by others, and if so, we would have never really known about their true goals.”

“Friends close, enemies closer… I get it,” Mira reluctantly murmured.

“Anyway, that’s enough Kali for today,” Ash casually chuckled, “but I was wondering… when you told her not to call me princess again, what was it for?”

“Hummmm, I don’t know… Just felt like it,” Mira said with a shrug.

_Hoping she wasn’t blushing too much._


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's waaaay more light-hearted.

After the dispute, the operators had quickly left the locker room. Sledge had had some trouble cooling down, as he had always been a little hot-tempered. But now he was starting to regret what happened. He had stood up to his colleagues, his friends, to protect someone he didn't really know and who was at fault in the first place. But Ash shouldn’t have punched her either.

After his shower, he put on his jogging suit from last year's Tournament of Champions and went to the bedroom, where he was hoping to find his girlfriend. He knocked gently, and entered the room.

She was sitting on the bed, her laptop on her stretched legs.

“Hey, darling!” he joyfully exclaimed, hopping towards her.

“I’ve heard about what happened,” Gridlock immediately said, eyebrows knitted with something Sledge really didn’t like to see on his girlfriend’s face.

He stopped.

“Eeer, you mean the fight?” he replied, playing ignorance.

“Yes. I mean the _fight_.”

“Well, for all it’s worth, I didn’t start it!” he quickly argued, lifting his hands up in a sign of innocence.

She closed her computer firmly, put it on the bedside table and came to stand in front of him, _glaring_ at him – and Sledge didn’t like how her aquamarine eyes seemed to sharply pierce through his entire soul.

“I know you violently pushed Jordan, while he hadn’t done anything. Max told me.”

“He was threatening Kali. He was going to add fuel to this bloody mess!” he tried to explain.

“He was just trying to stop her from fighting back against Eliza!”

“I didn’t push him that hard,” Sledge protested, “he just has… balance issues?”

“Max told me you sent him flying a few feet away! You pushed _Jordan_ while this whole thing was none of your business in the first place! _You_ made it escalate into a stupid bar fight.”

“I didn’t mean to!” he exclaimed, wincing. “I overreacted, ok?!”

“Did you at least apologize?” she bitterly asked, folding her arms.

“What? To Jordan? He knows how I am, there’s no need.”

She frankly gaped at that.

“You can’t be bloody serious,” she scoffed.

“We’ve known each other for 5 years! He knows how I sometimes overreact. It’s ok, really.”

“It’s not. Jordan may be one of the sweetest natures of the base; it doesn’t mean he can’t be hurt. And what you did, was hurtful. I would have GUTTED you, had you shoved me like that just to defend someone like _Kali_. If he’s your friend, you need to go and apologize. End of the story.”

“But he’s going to find it weird. I’m not good at this,” Sledge whined.

“Well, better and better!!” she cried. “Does this mean you never apologize when you’ve fucked up?!”

“Please, don’t yell at me, baby.”

“Don’t ‘baby’ me.”

“Oh, come oooon… I’m sorry, ok?”

He was about to wrap his arms around her, but she lifted her hands up, stepping away from him. And the rejection gesture _did_ sting him.

“I’m not the one you should apologize to,” she replied.

“But… I’m… It’s… baby, please… “

Sledge was turning into a heartbroken mess. Grid had never been mad at him like that, and it just hurt so much to see her so close, yet refusing any type of contact. And deep down, he _knew_ she was right, but somehow he just couldn’t help protesting.

“Is Jordan your friend, yes or no?” she clearly asked.

“Of course, he is.”

“Did you mean to hurt your friend?” she continued, lecturing him like a school teacher.

“No, I didn’t.”

“And if your friend was afraid to tell you you hurt him, what would you do?”

“Why would he be afraid to tell me?”

“Because it’s Jordan Bloody Trace!” she cried. “You’ve known him for so long, and you’ve never noticed how he _never_ tells people when he’s hurt or upset? He just makes jokes and pretends he’s alright.”

“See, that’s why you’re the brains and I’m the brawn.”

“No. I’m the brawn _with a brain_ , you’re just the brawn _less the_ brain. There’s a difference.”

Sledge grimaced and pouted, slumping on their bed and burying his face in the pillow.

“I didn’t mean to hurt him… “ he mumbled, his voice half muffled by the pillow, which somehow, made it easier for him to admit.

“Then tell him. He can’t guess it alone.”

“Why can’t he?”

“SEAMUS!” she cried. “ _You_ can’t even guess you might have upset him by _shoving him_ and _yelling_ at him, how do you expect him to guess you didn’t mean it!”

“I’m a horrible friend…”

“Yes, and you’d be a more horrible one if you don’t go and apologize to him.”

Seamus turned around and sat on the bed to face her. She was still glaring at him, arms folded under her breast. He stretched a hand towards her.

“I’ll tell him. Can we hug, now?”

“No.”

“What?!” he exclaimed.

“You heard me right. I’m in love with a man, not a _boy._ So, go behave like one, and I’ll hug my _man._ ”

Sledge pursed his lips in a pout, and stood up from the bed. When he walked past her, he sneakily bowed to drop a kiss on her head, but she rose her hand and pressed her palm against his mouth before he could reach her.

“Tooriiiiiii” he whined against her fingers.

“Nice try, big guy.”

“But I love youuuu.”

“I love you too. Now go.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yoooo, this one's fluffy and a wee bit angsty - very fanfiction-y haha  
> Also, there is no universe in which you can tell me our poor Thermite didn't get nasty bruises to his face from Aruni's punch :'(((

Ace was frankly surprised not to find Thermite with the others in the dining hall during lunch hour, especially after the tough morning competition. Of course, he had heard about the altercation between Ash and Kali. Aruni and Wamai had told him. It had turned sour, but people had finally split into two groups, even though some of them didn't really know where they really stood in the dispute...

And Ace was a little worried. Aruni had told him that Thermite had taken Ash's side, which wasn’t surprising at all, and that there had been a small physical confrontation between some other operators following the punch, but nothing too serious.

But why was Thermite nowhere to be found then?

Ace sighed after sweeping the dining hall with his eyes for the umpteenth time. He had already been to the arsenal, the gym, the stadium’s workshop… His last hope was their room, which he hadn’t checked yet. He headed for the dorm floor, checking his phone to see if Thermite had answered his messages, but still nothing.

He soon found himself in front of the door, and opened it, barely letting the corridor’s light into the dark room.

And that's where he found him.

Thermite was in their bed, reading something on his phone in the dark. Ace could barely see his face.

"Ah... Håvard?" Thermite stammered awkwardly.

“What are you doing here, alone?” Ace asked, a bit worried.

“Hm… nothing, just reading on my phone.”

“In the dark?”

“Yeah. Please, don’t turn the light on!” he quickly added.

Ace frowned at that.

“… Why?”

“Cause I… I’m resting my eyes a bit,” Thermite tried to explain.

But Ace could sense that something was wrong. So entering the dormitory and closing the door behind him, he turned on the switch. And his heart stopped beating when he saw Thermite’s face.

It was stained with nasty purple bruises and one of his eyes looked bloodshot.

“Jordan you… you’re hurt," Ace stammered, instantly running to his side.

“It’s not that bad,” Thermite replied with a shrug.

“Then why are you hiding it?” Ace responded, not buying it.

He gently grabbed Thermite’s chin between his fingers to have a better look at his injury.

“It’s just… there are other issues… “ Thermite sighed. “There’s been a fight between Eliza and Kali, and the others… well, you probably heard about it.”

“But Jordan, you’re… is your cheekbone fractured? Did you put ice on that? Where’s the ice pack? What did Doc and the medical staff tell you?”

“Hum… Nothing, it’s ok.”

Ace’s eyes opened wide at the sudden realization:

“You didn’t go to the med bay…?” he said in a short breath.

“Listen, Håvard, it’s just a bruise and-“

“It’s not just a bruise! Your face is purple, and your eye is bloodshot!! Jordan, we’re going to the med bay now!”

Ace immediately grabbed him by the arm, and hoisted Thermite up, pulling him out of the bed.

“Babe, it’s-“

“Jordan, please!”

Thermite had rarely seen Ace this angry; he usually was the first to make jokes in critical situations, taking things with light-hearted spirit, but this time… Thermite kept quiet, letting Ace drag him towards the med bay - not wanting to add more conflict to the situation.

_The day had been rough enough._

“How did it happen?” Ace asked on the way, gently pressing a hand on Thermite’s back.

“I’m not really sure. I think it’s from Apha’s punch, it happened so fast.”

“She punched you with her prosthetic arm?” Ace asked with worry. “The one that makes HOLES in soft walls?”

“Yeah… “

“ _Jæv-_ And you didn’t think it might have been a good idea to at least check if she hadn’t made a hole in your face too?”

“The situation was quite tense back there, 'Liza was hurt too, and then they-“

“Stop talking about the others! _Why_ didn’t you go to the med bay?” Ace cried.

“I don’t know… “

There was a silence after that. They continued walking, their footsteps echoing in the hallway. Ace was getting anxious. _Very_ anxious.  
He couldn’t help asking, throat knotted with concern:

“Are… are you going on a self-destructive cycle again? Should I worry?”

“No, I… I don’t know,” Thermite mumbled.

“Jordan… “

“I’m sorry… “ Thermite quickly added, on the verge of tears.

“No please, no!” Ace immediately replied. He didn’t mean to scold Thermite like that, let alone make him apologize for getting hurt. And seeing Thermite’s bruised and sad face, his eyes glistening with tears from all the pressure and probably his hidden pain, was breaking his heart.

He wrapped an arm around his shoulders, and resumed with a softer tone:

“Don’t say that, it just… it scares me, Jordan. I don’t want to relive what happened a few months ago when you nearly killed yourself with your gadget… You need to take care of yourself. You said you would make efforts.”

“I know but I… it just… I wasn’t feeling very well,” he admitted, “the conflict and all, it… I just wanted to escape this hell for a few goddam hours… ”

“You’re not just hurt on the outside… ” Håvard guessed, gently stroking Jordan’s neck and pressing a kiss in his hair. “Between Aruni beating the shit out of you, the conflict between Ash and Jai, and the others… “

“S-Seamus shoved me too,” Thermite reluctantly confessed. “I don’t know what I did to anger him like that, I was just trying to defend Eliza and prevent Kali from fighting back, and he yelled at me like I was actually beating someone when I just wanted to stop things from getting worse, and… Urgh, sorry, I’m acting like a hypersensitive kid.”

“No, you’re acting like someone who cares about his friends and the team’s unity. You’re a natural altruist. Unlike me, uh.”

“Don’t say that, babe… “

“For now, let’s patch you up, ok?” Ace softly resumed. “And then, we can chill a bit if you want. You said you wanted to escape this for a few hours, we could always watch a movie in the dorm, if you want to?”

“Yeah… I’ll probably have to grab something to eat first, though.”

“You didn’t eat?!”

“No…”

“Oh my… ! No, no, no, enough scolding,” Ace quickly calmed himself. “Let me guess, you didn’t want to face the others, so you avoided the dining hall, right?”

“Yeah… Kind of.”

“I’ll go and grab you something then, don’t worry.”

Thermite smiled weakly.

“Thanks.”

They quickly arrived at the medical bay. After examination, the medic ruled out the cheekbone fracture, though it may still be cracked and therefore, he told Thermite to come back later to check if Doc wanted a CT scan. Meanwhile, Thermite had earned an ice pack. They then returned to the dormitory, avoiding as many people as possible, and once he had secured his Thermite, Ace went to get him something to eat.

When he returned to the dorm, Thermite was half asleep in their bed, the ice pack still pressed against his dirty bruise. And Ace noticed something... There was one of his T-shirts crumpled on Thermite's shoulder. But Ace hadn't taken that shirt out. Thermite must have retrieved it from his locker...

He delicately placed the food on the table, so as not to shake Thermite out of his bubble, but the latter blinked and seemed to come back to reality. Ace walked to him, and sat on the bed. He softly started stroking Thermite’s clothed abdomen.

"How are you?"

“Fine. Sorry I was lost in thought.”

"I saw that... I brought you some food. I took all the kinds of meat I could find at the canteen.”

Thermite chuckled, putting his hand on Ace’s and tangling his fingers with his.

“Thanks, babe.”

“Is that my shirt?” Ace playfully asked, pointing with his chin at the cloth on Thermite’s shoulder.

“Y-Yeah. Long story,” he replied with a blush.

“I have time.”

Thermite nervously bit his lips, and pretended to look elsewhere, mumbling:

“When I came to the dorm… I was feeling a bit blue, and I wanted to smell your perfume.”

“Anw… Jordan…”

“Yup, that’s goddam cheesy.”

“Maybe, but that’s not a problem.”

Ace then reached for Thermite's hand that was holding the ice pack against his face.

"Can I see?”

Thermite shrugged and removed the pack for a few seconds. And even though it looked like it had deflated a little, it was still purple, and his eye was still bloodshot. His eyelids, which had always been a little droopy – from exhaustion or sadness - were a bit loose, especially on the side where he had been badly bruised. And Ace just wanted to hold him and protect him for the rest of eternity.

“Ugly, uh?”

“Jordan… Don’t ever underestimate or hide something like that again. Please.”

“Sorry…”

“And please, stop being sorry… You didn’t do anything in this mess… I’m just pissed you got caught in that, it’s unfair…“ Ace murmured as he ran his thumb over Thermite's lower lip.

The latter closed his eyes on contact, appreciating the softness of Ace’s fingers grazing his face. But when Ace leaned over to kiss him, someone knocked on their door. Thermite suddenly tensed, and Ace tried to reassure him:

"Shh, don't worry, I'll see who it is. They won't bother you, trust me.”

Ace stood up and went to open the door slightly, not leaving enough room to reveal Thermite on the bed.

It was Sledge. And Ace didn't like it.

He folded his arms, blocking the door with all his frame, in a protective instinct.

“Hum… Hey. Is Joe here?” Sledge asked, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Why? What do you want?” Ace immediately spat.

“He’s here, right?”

“Depends what you want.”

“Listen, I… You probably heard about what happened in the morning, and I… I’ve been an idiot. I shoved him a bit too harshly while he was just trying to calm things down, and… I didn’t mean to do it, I just acted like a bull. So, I wanted to say sorry.”

Thermite appeared, slipping between the door frame and Ace, who instinctively wrapped an arm around his shoulders to hold him close.

“It’s ok, man,” Thermite sighed. “I know you sometimes get a bit hotheaded in situations like that.”

But Sledge flinched at the sight of Thermite’s face.

“M-Mate, your face… I had seen it getting a little purple back then, but… it’s got worse. Did you put ice on that?”

Ace’s hand tightened on Thermite’s shoulder.

“Yeah, it’s… it’s nothing,” Thermite said with a shrug.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Did I hurt you too, when I shoved you?”

“Nah, you just sent me flying a few feet back. It was just like stepping on Nomad’s airjabs,” he joked.

“Can I… do something?”

“Yeah, let him rest properly?” Ace grumbled.

“No, it’s ok,” Thermite replied to Sledge. “I… I appreciate the apology though, I… I’ve been kind of wondering how I had angered you so much...”

“It wasn’t because of you, Joe… “ Sledge said with a wince, realizing that Gridlock had been right – he had completely underestimated how much the gesture had psychologically hurt his friend. “I wish I could undo it…”

“It’s ok, man, I forgive you.”

Sledge smiled weakly and opened his arms. Thermite rolled his eyes, with an amused smirk, and accepted the bro hug, wrapping his arms around Sledge and tapping him in the back.

And after painfully long seconds, Ace cleared his throat and started unsticking them:

“Oooook, that’s enough hugging, for now. He needs to rest.”

“Scared I might steal your boyfriend, Instaboy?” Sledge taunted, aware of Ace’s jealousy.

“Huh, you better not try, or I’ll make sure to ruin your entire life,” Ace scoffed before pressing a loud kiss in Thermite’s hair.

Sledge snorted.

“Anyway, yeah, I’m sorry and I regret it,” he repeated to Thermite. “And just… let me know if you need anything.”

“Will do, Seamus. Thanks,” Thermite replied with a smile.

Ace closed the door himself in a theatrical gesture, before any goodbye, and started rubbing his head against the uninjured side of Thermite's face.

“W-What the hell are you doing now?” Thermite chuckled.

“I’m scent marking you. I don’t like the odor of his Cologne on you.”

Thermite laughed, pushing Ace a bit.

“Come on, I didn’t hug him for that long.”

“It was long enough,” Ace protested, gently pushing Thermite to the bed.

“Just admit you wanted a hug, uh?”

“Hmmm… maybe.”

“You just had to ask,” Thermite replied, lying on the mattress and opening his arms.

Ace smirked, but first grabbed the ice pack and brought it to Thermite’s face, before snuggling against his torso, letting his head rest against his collarbone, draping his body with his. Thermite’s arm instinctively wrapped itself around Ace’s shoulders.

“I’m feeling better, thanks,” Thermite then said.

“Ice can do wonders.”

“I wasn’t talking about the ice.”

Ace repositioned a bit, so that his head was resting on the pillow next to Thermite’s. His hand slid under Jordan’s T-shirt, exploring his muscled abdomen, and covering it with caresses. He then asked:

“You do?”

“Yeah… Thanks for taking care of me, and… helping me.”

“It’s normal, Jordan. I love you.”

“Well, I love you too.”

Ace smirked, and closed his eyes, his lips stretching in a genuine grin. He kept on stroking Thermite’s body, until he couldn’t, because he fell asleep next to him.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you guys liked it. Lemme know <3


End file.
